The new flights are part of a commitment to Chicago by American Air, which is trying to fend off a challenge from United.
The Fort Worth carrier is beefing up its schedule with a significant boost to additional daily departures to more than 75 destinations, just ahead of the Spring Break travel season. The additions include service from O’Hare to Las Vegas, Panama City, Sarasota, Fla.
, and more, according to American. O’Hare is arguably the largest dual-hub airports in the country, with American and United dominating the market share. This month, United offered more than 3.8 million seats, while American offered more than 2.7 million, according to data from Diio by Cirium.According to American, its the only carrier to offer premium seats on every flight from O’Hare after replacing smaller aircraft with dual-class regional jets that include WiFi service. TheThe ORD expansion means American’s Spring 2026 departures will be a 30% increase from this year, the carrier said. American flew to 29 new destinations from Chicago this year and next year will reach 500 peak daily departures from O’Hare in the Spring, solidifying the airport as American’s third-largest hub. with American Air executives saying in recent months that the carrier would not back down from a battle with United for dominance at O’Hare, after the Chicago-based carrier won a legal battle to secure more gates at the busy travel hub. American quickly punched back, purchasing two gates from bankruptcy-ridden Spirit Airlines for $30 million earlier this month. “We’re committed to rebuilding our Chicago hub to be stronger and more compelling for our customers, and our 2026 plans are both emblematic of that objective and an exciting way to end a year defined by bold growth and investment at ORD,” Steve Johnson, American’s vice chair and chief strategy officer, said in a statement. The airline said it is also increasing service between Chicago and DFW Airport, where it operates its central hub. American dominates the DFW market share, usually accounting for more than 80% of flights to and from the airport.The airline is adding more block time, the scheduled time between pushback at the departure gate and arrival at the destination gate, to and from DFW and across the airline’s network. The added time will help ensure more on-time departures and reduce delays, American said. American, starting in April, is switching from a 9-bank structure to a 13-bank structure at DFW. Airlines use bank structures to schedule large groups of flights together, allowing carrier’s to coordinate arrivals, departures and connections.For American’s customers at DFW, the schedule adjustment will mean more flights departing in highly-desired time windows, and less early-morning departures to DFW. “As the operating environment and our customers’ expectations have evolved in the last 10 years, our approach at our largest and most impactful hub must also evolve,” Jim Moses, senior vice president of American’s DFW operation, said in a statement. “We’re making this significant shift while maintaining the same breadth, depth and schedule quality our customers expect and depend on. That means good things for American’s customers, our team members and just about everyone who depends on the airline.”The new 31-gate terminal, which will be DFW’s sixth, will be operated exclusively by American and will have its own ticketing and baggage claim. Terminal’s A and C are already undergoing construction to its piers, which will net more gates for American.Jordan Parker is the aviation beat reporter for The Dallas Morning News. Prior to joining the newsroom in August 2025, he spent three years at the San Francisco Chronicle as a breaking news reporter covering everything from crime to protests to natural disasters. He graduated from Sacramento State University, where he studied journalism, in 2022.
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